Star Wars: The Knights of Rey
by NelBlake92
Summary: This is the sequel to Star Wars: The Last Hope, and the companion novella for The Neo Order: a Reylo Star Wars Story. This story picks up right after the battle on Ilum. Eshreal and the others work to fight back against Zoroyais and the First Order with the help of the other members of the Resistance.
1. Chapter 1

Hello and welcome to the sequel to Star Wars: The Last Hope, a companion novella that goes with my Reylo Star Wars series. Now that the second installment of the Reylo series is out I figured it was time to start the companion novella for The Neo Order: a Reylo Star Wars Story. I will try to keep this novella more coherent so that while it will rely on the main story you can read the chapters without being totally lost if you miss a chapter from the other story.

With that being said: **PLEASE READ CHAPTERS 1-3 OF** **THE NEO ORDER: A REYLO STAR WARS STORY** **IN ORDER TO GET THE FULL EFFECT.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the amazing character except Eshreal Mecca!

If you like it let me know. If you didn't let me know why...

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Chapter 1: The Aftermath and Improvements

Once Eshreal Mecca, Asera Tessu, Cade Hacduel, Talik'Ivaddi, and Arca Gearsky now calling themselves the Knights of Rey arrived back on Olara, Asera and Gear worked tirelessly to help Kylo Ren and Zer-o, one of their own who'd been gravely injured along with Kylo in the fight against Zoroyais a dark Force user in league with the first. Neither of them had regained consciousness even after Rey. Their wounds couldn't be treated with Bacta or any of the other remedies that Asera tried. Needless to say, the whole process was daunting and slow going.

Once Rey shared her light with Kylo Ren and Asera corroborated her claim of black mist rising from Kylo's wound Gear began working on a device to capture the mist in order to analyze it and it's connection to whatever was wrong with their people. Once he came up with the design Eshreal and Cade helped him get everything he needed to complete it.

It was that device that allowed Asera and Gear to figure out that the reason Zer-o and Kylo's wounds were not closing was because the blade Zoroyais used was made of strange metal mixture. For sure they were able to identify Durasteel as one of the components. The other seemed to be a poison bonded metal that somehow broke down when it came into contact with living matter. That was what was keeping the two men unconscious.

Seven days after Rey shared her light with Kylo he regained consciousness.

That was all the confirmation that Asera needed for her to suggest that Rey try the same process with Zer-o. Rey was skeptical at first. But when she agreed, Asera agreed to try with her. While Asera was unsuccessful, Rey was able to get her light through to Zer-o. It seemed to tire her out so Sera agreed to let her and Kylo sleep it off in the med bay until the next day when they could go back to their hut.

None of the members of the Knights of Rey ever lost hope as they waited for Zer-o to wake up. Cade, Eshreal and Taliki took turns sitting by his bedside. Cade would tell him about the gadgets that the Jasmenerthians have been building for the Resistance. Eshreal had taken over taking care of Zer-o's pet Nexu and would give him regular updates. Taliki on the other hand would just come to sit at his bedside; she would never say anything and would only come when no one else was around.

She didn't tell anyone but she'd been feeling out of place lately. Sitting with Zer-o made her feel useful. Even if she was only sitting there.

Kylo Ren was out for several days after Rey's visit, but he also had more wounds, Zer-o only had one bad wound so it only ended up being 3 days before he regained consciousness. It was late Asera had fallen asleep at her desk so it was Taliki who was at his side when he woke up. They had taken to sitting on his right side so that when he did wake up he would be able to see whoever was there.

"Where the hell am I," his deep voice startled Taliki who had been lost in thought.

"You in the med bay back at the Olara base," Taliki said softly once she'd regained her composure.

Zer-o turned his head so that he could see her better. The male's one good eye looked over Taliki and wondered what she was doing here.

"Did Cade make you sit in here," he asked.

"No…I just…," Taliki was nervous and she didn't know why.

"Just making sure I didn't croak," he asked and sat up so that he could see her better.

"NO! I just figured it would be better if you woke up with someone by your side to explain everything," she said starting to get irritated with the male's attitude.

"What's to explain? Zoroyais took my eye with that damn blade and tried to kill Ren. Did that dark haired bastard make it," Zer-o asked genuinely curious.

Taliki nodded, "Yes. He's been out of the med bay for two days now."

"How long were we out?"

"We've been back on Olara for 10 days," she said gently.

"Shit! I've missed 10 days of training," Zer-o asked, trying to get up.

The machine monitoring his heart began going crazy as he got worked up.

"No, not really. There hasn't been much training with you out and Kylo Ren still healing. You've both had to heal naturally as the poison from Zoroyais' blade prevents things like Bacta and healing with the Force from working. Our group really hasn't gotten together since before Ilum," Taliki explained trying to calm him down before he woke up Asera.

"Oh," he said but it was too late.

"Taliki, I said you could sit in here but you better not be agitating my patient," Asera said as she came out of the office.

She stopped in her tracks as soon as she saw Zer-o sitting up on his own. Taliki smiled at her while Zer-o just scowled. Asera came over and began checking him over ignoring the expression on his face.

"She really is amazing," Asera said.

"Who," Zer-o asked.

"Rey. She's the only reason why you aren't dead right now," Asera said.

"Taliki said that you couldn't heal us with the Force so what did our great leader do that you couldn't Zer-o asked.

Asera proceeded to tell Zer-o everything that had happened with Rey sharing her light with the two of them while Taliki went to gather the other members of the Knights of Rey. Zer-o was just as impressed with Rey as the rest of them were as Sera explained how impossible it'd been for her to try to force her light into Zer-o the way that Rey had.

Eshreal and Cade showed up first with Gear not too far behind them. Eshreal ran and threw her arms around the Zabrak male. Taliki suspected that if it was anyone other than their captain he wouldn't have allowed it.

"Ease off of him, Essie," Cade said as he went over and shook his partner/brother's hand.

"Oh, sorry," Essie said moving to the other side so that she wasn't crowding him.

"How are you feeling, brother," Cade asked.

"Like Rhimar would have kicked my ass for sacrificing my perfect vision to help out Kylo Ren," Zer-o said but Cade could tell that he was at least half joking.

Rhimar had been the woman who pretty much raised the two of them. She had been killed by the First Order a few years before Cade and the others joined up with the resistance. She taught them never to sacrifice something you can't live without for something you could live without and at the moment Zer-o didn't know if he could live without his eye.

"I think she would be proud of you for being willing to die for the good of the group. Though if you ever do that again I may have to kick your ass myself," Cade said with a half-smile.

"I second that notion," Eshreal said.

"Well don't blame me. How was a supposed to know that the dark super being would be using a blade made of poison metal," Zer-o asked.

"That is a good point," Taliki said.

"Speaking of which, Asera when you get some time can you help me in the lab. Your medical knowledge would be a great help in trying to isolate the poison in the metal. Maybe if I can figure it out on a molecular level we could reproduce it," Gear said to which Sera nodded.

"So Doc, when can I get out of here," Zer-o asked, drawing the attention back to him.

"You can leave today as long as you have someone to help you around the base. Your depth perception will be off and I can't have you falling or running into walls," Asera said.

"Cool, so who wants to be my base guide," Zer-o asked.

Asera and Gear were out as they would be busy in the lab until someone needed medical attention, Rey and Kylo called a meeting for them, or they figure out what the blade had been made of.

"Sorry brother, I've been helping out with the new security measures around the base and I'm supposed to be meeting with Taliah in the workshop like right now," Cade said.

"Alright, tell Taliah I'm willing to help out too as soon as Sera clears me," Zer-o said.

He and Cade shook hands and the Shistavanen took off. Zer-o looked to Eshreal.

"Poe promised to teach me to shoot a bow and arrow as well as a blaster today. Otherwise you know I would be happy to escort you around the base," Essie said.

"Please tell me you are free Liki. Otherwise I'll have to resort to younglings or worse regular people," Zer-o said and Taliki actually laughed.

"As the most useless member of the Knights of Rey, my day is wide open," she said. Gear, Eshreal, Asera and Zer-o all open their mouths at the same time but Taliki just held her hand up and said, "I'm more useful in a fight than I am with any of the things that need to be done around here. I'm not a healer/Doctor or a scientist so I can't help identify the metal from your wounds. I'm not mechanically inclined so I can't help with all of the new advancements the Jasmenerthians are working on. I have no interest in learning to shoot anything. And as a former slave I need the classes that Leia and Poe have taken over more than I could ever hope to help out with."

Eshreal headed off once she was sure that they hadn't hurt Liki's feelings. Asera and Gear waited until Taliki and Zer-o were safely out of the med bay before Sera locked the place up and they headed for the lab. It seemed the air was lighter now that the med bay was totally empty.

…

Cade left the med bay and went directly to the Workshop that was right off of the hanger area of the Olara Base. It was a long walk but when he got there Taliah and Tommen were just opening the shop. The two giants paused and waited for Cade to join them so they could all go in together.

"I heard Zer-o is up," Taliah said with a smile.

"Yeah, all thanks to Rey. Now we can get back to our training," Cade said flashing teeth.

"Aww, does that mean we are losing you or that Zer-o will be joining us," Tommen asked.

"Of course he wants to join us. We could use his weapons' expertise for some of the defense systems we are working on," Cade said. "Though I don't think we'll just be sitting around once Zer-o and Ren are back to full strength. There'll be training and missions to go on but we'll try to come by as much as possible," Cade said.

"Well next time you all are facing my sister I would like to be there," Taliah said.

"I'm sure we can arrange that. Eventually we will need all of the help we can get," Cade said. "So what are we doing today," Cade asked.

"We're still working on the new motion sensors for outside of the Force field," Tommen said.

"We could be done with those and have moved on to something else if you weren't such a perfectionist," Taliah said with a teasing smile.

"I am not a perfectionist. Is it too much to ask that the sensors be able to tell sentient from non-sentient life as well as our people from those who'd want to hurt us," Tommen asked.

"No its not," Cade interjected before the couple could start arguing.

"Well then Cade I really hope you have some suggestions on how we can complete those sensors so we can start working on the ones I want to deploy into the atmosphere so that they can detect incoming ships," Taliah said.

"I though Micah was working on those," Cade said as he sat down at one of the tables with one on the motion sensors.

"He is but he's also been working with Saniyah on the J-wings. We need to finish and deploy all of these new instruments as soon as possible. We need more workers. Splitting our number between ships, weapons, and defense technology is really slowing us down," Taliah said with a sigh.

"Plus we could really use a real factory," Tommen added.

"Hey what if we started training some of the people who aren't being taught to fight," Cade suggested.

Taliah and Tommen both seemed to think on it.

"With all of the ex-slaves and rebels who want to fight the First Order but can't because of age, sickness, injury or disability that Poe is bringing in we could easily double the size of each department," Cade said trying to sell the point more.

"We can try it, Cade but some of us went to school for almost a decade to learn some of this stuff," Tommen said.

"I'm not saying we teach them rocket science but we could teach them to weld and basic wiring. That takes up most of our time anyway," Cade said. "I can't get us a factory but this could help."

"I think it could work, love. Let's talk to Leia later and see what she says," Tommen said just as the others began arriving for the days' shift.

…

Eshreal was meeting with Poe Dameron outside of the Force Field that not only kept things and people from just waltzing onto their land and also kept the base from being detected or spotted by ships flying by. The rest of Olara was dense jungle with rolling hills and sweeping valleys. There were a couple of oceans and lakes but where Poe suggested they meet was one of Essie's favorite spots.

There was a hill overlooking one of valley's that was more rock and stone than jungle and water near the edge of the landmass that the base was built on. Whenever Eshreal got home sick she would go there and practice the flying drills her mother used to put her through when she was little. Poe suggested the spot because there was a very narrow chance of her actually shooting someone out there on accident.

Eshreal's trusty droid V5 followed at her side. The little purple and white astro-mech let out a stream of whistles, beeps and boops that made Essie laugh. She'd asked Eshreal about her sudden interest in things that shoot when she'd had the same lightsaber for almost as long as she's been alive.

"I don't mind close quarters combat but almost everyone on our team can fight up close. I can fly. I need a weapon that can be used at long range so that I can help my team more," Eshreal said as she spotted Poe sitting on a particularly flat rock near the edge of the cliff. "Hi Poe," Eshreal called.

Poe looked up and spotted her and her droid. When BB-8 rolled from behind him V5 stopped in her tracks. Eshreal knew that if she could the little astro-mech would be blushing.

"If you like him you should just tell him," Essie said and kept going.

Behind her she could hear V5 spewing insults her way. She just laughed and unfolded her wings. She flew toward Poe who watched her in awe. Most people forgot about her wings unless they were out or she was talking about them.

"Hey Eshreal," Poe said with a smile. "So I know you said that you have no experience shooting anything so I brought several options with me," Poe said.

He proceeded to show Eshreal a wooden bow and arrows that he had to have made himself, a crossbow blaster like the one Chewie carried, a bow made out of metal with arrows that looked sharper than anything she'd ever seen, a blaster pistol and a blaster rifle.

"We won't get to all of these today but I wanted you to at least know what they all look like," Poe said as Eshreal came over and touched each of the weapons.

"Thank you for helping me with this Poe. I know that shooting is taught in basic Resistance training but I haven't got that. If I tried to get Cade or Zer-o to help me they would probably just misunderstand why I feel the need to do this and then they'd get all offended and I don't have time for that. I just want to have more options," Essie said.

"It's no problem, Essie. Let's get started shall we," Poe said with a smile and handed her the wooden bow.

…

The Lab was only a short walk from the Med Bay. There weren't many scientists clamoring to join the Resistance so most of the time Gear had the lab all to himself. Though sometimes the droid known as BQ-21 would come into do some light cleaning but otherwise the lab was Gear's personal space.

Off and on over the last couple of days Asera has been in and out checking on whatever progress he made. At first it had irritated Gear that she kept bugging him but after sitting and talking to her for a couple hours he came to the conclusion that she really cared about her patients and would do whatever she had to in order to help them.

"So you said you had made some progress," Asera asked as Gear sat down at a microscope.

"Yeah, I was finally able to find a solution that would dissolve the Durasteel but wouldn't compromise the unknown component. I've been looking for a poison that matches what I'm seeing but I can't think of one," Gear said and moved so that Asera could look.

"I've never seen anything like this. It almost looks like Sith Poison but not," she said.

"And the effects are similar. Sith Poison preys on the emotions and tries to draw you to the dark side, this seems to prey the darkness already within the person and uses it to suppress the parts of themselves that are light. Which would only keep someone who is connected to both the Light and the Dark sides of the Force like Kylo unconscious," Gear paused to make sure that Sera was following where he was going.

"We know that Zer-o was with Kylo by mistake. It should have been Rey out there with Kylo. Are you saying that Zoroyais planned to knock them out with this poison and the take them," Sera asked. Gear nodded and she asked, "But for someone who obviously pulls to the light wouldn't this poison have killed her like Sith Poison?"

"Look at what happened when we escaped Ilum. Rey was never touched with the Poison but she was still unconscious for well over 12 hours. That would have been more than enough time to get them to wherever," he reasoned.

"So really it was just luck that it was Zer-o out there and not one of us. We could have been killed. Hells he probably was trying to kill Zer," Asera said.

She wandered over and picked up one of the matte gray and silver cylinder that Gear called a jar. It was a tiny opening on one end and there was a piece of transparisteel so you could see how much of the substance they had collected. There was a button that would allow you suck in a gaseous material and another button that would release tiny quantities of the material. Gear had even included a button that would cause a tiny fire to destroy the material inside if need be.

There were 10 of the jars full of the poison in total. Three of them had come from Zer-o but the other seven had come from Kylo and Sera suspected that if she'd listened to Rey right away that they would have been able to collect more.

"We need to run more tests," Gear concluded and Asera had to agree.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the amazing characters!

 **Chapter 2: Group Training**

For weeks the members of the Knights of Rey worked on their individual hobbies and jobs while Zer-o was still considered too injured to do anything.

Eshreal worked with Poe on his lightsaber training and her bow and arrow training during the day and in the hanger as a mechanic at night. Asera had taken on a few of the rebels as interns so that she could teach them about medicine. Cade was helping Thalia and Tommen set up the engineering school/training program as well as developing new spy technology for the rebel fighters. Taliki asked to come work with Connix in the communications room as the more people left to peruse the new opportunities arising among the Resistance leaving vacancies in one of the most important jobs in the Resistance. Gear spent almost all of his time in the lab trying to replicate the poison used by Zoroyais.

And Zer-o was stuck training with Kylo most of the time. When he wasn't training he was stuck in the med bay with Asera running all different kinds of tests on him to make sure that he was back in fighting shape. After a month everyone was sick of the isolation and Zer-o had long since proven that he didn't lose anything that the Force couldn't make up for.

One afternoon Eshreal appeared at Zer-o's room where she found him mediating.

"Isn't meditating more fun when it's done in a group," she asked startling Zer-o.

"What's up, captain," Zer-o asked.

"Nothing, was gonna get the band together for some group training," she said with a smile.

"And Sera isn't gonna have a coronary when I show up," he asked.

Essie shrugged and said, "Dunno, you are the first person I came to. I figured you'd want this more than anyone and if you were the first one to say yes the others can't blow it off by saying that it's not the same without you."

"Well I'm in," he said and together they went to find Cade.

"Finally we are getting back to it," Cade said excitedly.

He strapped his lightsaber rifle to his back as they spoke.

"We need to get in some real training before we are attacked again and since Zer-o says he's ready I don't see what we would be waiting for," Essie said.

"Yeah, let's go round everyone else up," Cade said happily.

As the three of them traversed the halls looking for Taliki Cade struck up a conversation with Zer-o.

"So how was solo training with Ren," he asked.

Zer-o shot his adopted brother an unfriendly look.

"It's not like we are friends now or something. We just both feel the same way when it comes to Zoroyais," Zer-o said.

"And what is that," Essie asked.

"We can't take another L against him and we have to do whatever it takes to make sure none of you lose your life to him," Zer-o said and was way more serious than he usually was when he was around Cade.

"Damn, I knew it was serious but I didn't think anything could bring you and Ren to common ground," Cade said and whistled.

"Poe seems to think that Kylo is changing, becoming more like Ben Solo than ever before," Essie said as they reached the coms room.

"Do you think Rey did something to him to bring out that side of him," Zer-o asked.

"Nope. I doubt Snoke was ever able to completely bury the light that was Ben Solo and I don't think Kylo ever actually wanted to fall to the darkness, he just wanted someone to accept him for who he was and that is exactly what Rey did. It makes sense that he's reverting back to his true self," Cade said surprising both Essie and Zer-o.

"I didn't think you'd thought that much about Ren and his relationship to the dark side," Zer-o said.

"I hadn't. It just makes sense," Cade said and shrugged as Essie slipped into the coms room.

She came out with Taliki after a few seconds.

"Where are we going," Taliki asked as they headed down the hall toward the lab and med bay.

"Probably the training space. It's not like anyone else is using it," Essie said as she skipped down the hall toward the lab.

"Do you think Rey and Kylo will have a problem with us using it," Taliki asked.

"I don't think so," Cade and Zer-o said at the same time.

"Gear and Sera might," Essie said.

"Why," Liki asked.

"Because Gear would want us to go and get formal permission and Sera wants to treat me like an invalid," Zer-o said with a frown.

"She is a doctor. She just wants what's best for you," Liki said.

"A month on bedrest for a superficial injury is over kill. Ren has acknowledged that I'm the same as before because my connection to the Force is so strong it's like I never even lost my eye. I know for a fact that Kylo has been off training on his own like he was before he became one of our Masters," Zer-o said and Essie nodded.

"I saw him when I was out training one day. He can call a small storm like it's nothing while he was mediating," Essie explained as they came upon the lab.

Gear was so busy looking through a microscope that he didn't even notice that they had entered the room.

"Hey Gear, what's up," Cade asked causing Gear to jump physically.

He looked genuinely surprised to see the four of them standing there.

"I'm just working on reverse engineering the poison Zoroyais that used to disable Zer-o and Ren," he said.

"Well can you put that on hold for an hour or two," Cade asked.

"Why," Gear asked hesitantly.

"Because we all need to train together as a group. It's been forever since we've been able to and I'm afraid that we are going to lose our edge as a cohesive unit," Essie said.

The group looked at Gear expectantly as he looked around the lab and then sighed.

"It is important to keep up our training I suppose," he said.

"Good let's go," Cade said.

Gear rushed around the lab to preserve his work and then grabbed his lightsaber before joining the others. Lastly, they went to the med bay where Asera was looking over files at her desk in her office. She did not look pleased to see the group.

"What's this," she asked.

"We want to go and train as a group and we need you to do that," Eshreal said.

"Are you sure this is wise, Essie? I only just approved Zer-o to be active a few days ago," she said skeptically.

"I'm fine, red woman. I just wanna fight something," Zer-o said quickly.

Everyone else more or less agreed. It had been almost a month and a half since they'd gotten to do anything other than work. Of course, everyone meditated but that wasn't as fulfilling with out the physical outlet that came from sparring and training.

"We need this Sera. Plus, it'll be fun and you know it," Liki said with a smile.

Sera looked at the file in her hand and then at Zer-o and the scar that ran down his left eyelid.

"Fine but if anything happens and you need medical attention I'm going to let Kizer take care of you," Asera said. "Kizer, I'm heading out for a little while. Only come and get me if something drastic happens," she called grabbing her lightsaber.

The fully assembled team headed to their old training ground and began stretching and preparing for training.

"Now what," Asera asked.

"Mediation first, then a one on one to test out our abilities then sparring," Essie suggested.

"Screw that, I think we've all had enough meditation lets just see where we are combat wise," Cade suggested.

He looked around for confirmation from the group. Almost everyone nodded except Asera and Essie. The two women exchanged a glance and Asera finally just shrugged. Cade and Zer-o exchanged a grin.

"Fine, whatever," Essie said and then pointed to Zer-o. "Since you've been out of commission the longest let's see what you can do. Everybody back up," she called.

Zer-o joined Eshreal in the center of the semi-circle that the group had formed. He held his hands up in front of him but Essie shook her head.

"Remember everyone this is to show off your connection to the Force," Essie said. "So Zer-o what Force ability are you most proud of?"

Zer-o didn't even have to think about it, he just closed his eyes. After a few seconds something move began moving toward them from deep in the jungle. Essie could feel he was calling something with the Force. Suddenly Shira, Zer-o's nexu, came rushing out of the bushes to stop in front of Zer-o and Essie. Without even saying a word Shira laid down in front of Zer-o so that he could mount her.

"I see you've mastered the Beast Bond Technique, impressive," Essie said.

"Mastering this technique means that not only can I calm and tame beasts, I can form bonds with them through the Force and call them to my aid whenever I need to," Zer-o said proudly.

"That is an awesome skill. We'll get to the fighting techniques when we start sparing. I want to see stuff like this," Essie said as Shira walked over to the side and lay down so that Zer-o could get off of her and join the semi-circle.

She looked at Asera and beckoned her forward.

"I know we never got a chance to do this with you Sera before we had to go to Ilum but I think it will be good for us to see what you've been working on since joining us," Essie explained.

"Okay," Sera said and closed her eyes.

The air next to Sera began to shimmer like the spot was heating up and then suddenly Eshreal could see a shadow forming in the shape of a humanoid. The longer Asera stood there focusing the sharper the image became until an exact double of herself was standing there. The two Aseras moved at the same time though opposite of each other like they were looking in the mirror.

"I've been working on mastering Doppelganger to the point where I can work on two patients at the same time. My double can't manipulate the Force but she can work mostly independently from me for a little over 10 minutes," Asera explained and the group began to cheer.

Now their doctor was like two doctors. The group clapped as she allowed the double to fade.

"Okay, Cade you are next," Essie said and Cade stepped into the center to face their captain.

Cade didn't close his eyes or anything like that. Instead he pulled a regular blaster from a holster under his arm. He laid his free hand over the barrel of the weapon and suddenly it began to glow with blue white light. Cade grinned at Zer-o as he fired a shot at one of the giant boulders that lined the edge of the field. The blaster shot hit the boulder and it exploded.

"What the hell was that," Zer-o asked.

"Force weapon. I can make any blaster or weapon I want as powerful as a lightsaber rifle," Cade said proudly.

"That will definitely come in handy," Zer-o said.

"Yeah as long as he teaches the rest of us to do that too," Essie said and shooed Cade out of the center. "Come on Liki. Show us what you got," Essie said.

Taliki tentatively moved into the center of the group. She closed her eyes and suddenly she was outlined in a blue white aura. After a few seconds she began to float off of the ground but that wasn't the trick. Behind the group Taliki was causing the tiny pieces of boulder that Cade had created to float and swirl and dance in a circle. Once everyone noticed what she was doing she flung the dancing stones at the cliff wall in the distance and even from where they all stood they could clearly see and hear the impact of those tiny rocks hitting the face of the cliff.

"I've mastered my telekinesis. I can move pretty much anything I want with my mind now. It really helps when using my whip," she said with a shy smile.

"That's great, Liki. You are the first one out of all of us to master one of the main focuses of the Force. Congrats," Asera said and hugged her friend when she joined her back on the side lines.

Gear stepped up as the only one left and closed his eyes. His face screwed up in concentration and all of a sudden the others began to feel hazy and weird. Cade looked to Zer-o but all he could see was a monster and the same could be said for the rest of the group. When they looked around they all saw monsters instead of their comrades.

"What the hell is this," Taliki called.

"It is Force confusion," Eshreal said struggling to see through the advance mind trick.

"That is correct captain. This is an advanced version of the Jedi Mind Trick that causes everyone I wish to see their partners as enemies and vice versa," Gear said proudly.

"Can't wait to see you use that in battle," Cade said rubbing his temples.

"Yeah but if you ever do it to any of us ever again I will hurt you," Zer-o said with an attitude.

"Yeah, yeah calm down everyone. This was a learning experience so you would know what to expect from each other in a real fight," Eshreal said.

"And what about you, Essie? Are you gonna show us what you've been working on," Taliki asked.

Eshreal shrugged.

"If you didn't like what Gear just did you really won't like the new technique that I mastered," she said with a slight smile.

"Well at least you warned us first, now come on with it," Asera said.

"Okay, remember you asked for it," Essie said and closed her eyes.

Slowly but surely each member of the group began to lose their hearing, then eye sight and then the sense of where they were before finally they all realized that they couldn't move a single muscle. She could feel them beginning to panic before she fully released her hold on them. She opened her eyes and found that her friends were staring at her with wide eyes.

"That was Force Stun. It allows me to completely immobilize my opponents starting with the senses and ending with their actual motor functions. I didn't want to use it on you guys but there you have it," Eshreal said and Cade and Zer-o let out shaky laughs. "People like Zoroyais, Kylo and Rey could probably force their way out of it but I could keep a bunch of clones in that state for hours," she said proudly.

"I'm sure Zoroyais and the First Order won't know what hit them the next time we get to take them on," Gear said with a fierce smile.

Eshreal nodded and the group fell into one big group discussion. After a few moments of letting them chat Essie let out a loud whistle. Once they had all turned their attention back to her.

"Everyone pair off to start and then we can mix it up," Essie said pulling her lightsaber from hip and igniting it while removing her cloak and letting her wings out.

Cade and Zer-o loaded their lightsabers into their blasters while the others ignited their own weapons and began squaring off.

"Who wants a go at the cripple," Zer-o called tauntingly.

Cade fired a shot at him carelessly which Zer-o was easily able to dodge. Taliki struck at Eshreal with her whip and Essie dodged it. Asera and Gear both regarded each other coolly but didn't make a move. The group broke into chaos before finally Eshreal called it quits.

"This is pointless. How are we supposed to know if we are in fighting shape if we're holding back. We need a real fight," Zer-o said frustration in his voice.

"How do you suppose we find a real fight," Eshreal asked.

Zer-o threw his hands up and growled in frustration.

"He's restless. This is the longest we've stayed in one spot without having a set mission in a long time. We need to do something," Cade said before Zer-o could snap at her.

"We all have our part to play," Asera said.

"I thought ours was the part of warriors, not students. We haven't done anything since that mission for the bacta. We're no more than errand runners," Zer-o said in a frustrated tone.

"I'm fine where I am," Gear said. "You shouldn't complain about what the Resistance asks us to do or not do. You should be grateful that they even allow us to stay here," he said.

Cade shook his head as Zer-o turned back to Gear with that look in his eyes.

"Don't start you two. This was about building our team chemistry and making sure that we are all ready whenever we do get a chance to go out and take on Zoroyais and his creepy clones," Cade said. "No offense Gear."

Cade glanced at Zer-o to see if he was going to join on the joke but Zer-o still looked deadly serious.

"You're the one who needs to be grateful Gear. The only reason why the Resistance took you in is because Leia couldn't be a hypocrite and let Ren in and not you after learning that you were once Snoke's apprentice too," Zer-o said. "I've never been a sith lord's apprentice and my mother made sure that I knew that the so called Light and Dark sides of the Force mean nothing, that only the way you use the Force matters. You actively nurtured the dark side," Zer-o said. "I was a proud bounty hunter of house Benelex and you're nothing more than a clone so of course you're grateful," Zer-o snapped at Gear.

Gear's face shut down to become an angry mask.

"You're just angry because you thought you were big and bad and you got your ass handed to you by the baddest mutha in the galaxy. Go take your anger out on someone who gives a damn 'cause I sure as hell don't," Gear said.

"If I remember correctly you didn't even attempt to act like you wanted to help Ren in his fight against Zoroyais. I would have been honored to have died on that battlefield because I am a warrior with honor. You on the other hand are nothing but a know-it-all clone who barely knows how to do anything other than stick your nose in a book. It's amazing that you've lasted this long…Oh wait you've been doing experiments on yourself forever and still didn't know you were a clone until you were an adult. I don't even know why Cade bothered to bring you with us when we left Kamino," Zer-o said in a voice that was more of a growl than anything.

The two males were chest to chest now. Eshreal rolled her eyes while Cade moved to separate the two of them. Taliki and Asera looked slightly shocked. They hadn't been around long enough to have seen Zer-o and Gear get into a serious fight. Over the almost 2 years that Eshreal had spent with Cade, Zer-o and Gear she'd seen Zer-o and Gear come to blows a few times. Sometimes it was Cade and Gear but mostly Cade was the voice of reason and Essie was a spectator.

Cade tried to separate them but they both pushed him away.

"Guys, it's really not that serious," he said.

They both turned to him and said, "IT IS."

Eshreal rolled her eyes.

"They aren't gonna really fight are they," Taliki asked.

Eshreal shrugged, "They might. I've seen them fight a bunch of times."

"That's not reassuring, Essie." Asera said with frown on her pretty face.

"Wasn't supposed to be. It's just the truth. They are so petty that they often come to blows," Essie said.

The two males stared into each other's eyes. Before either of them could throw the first blow two figures came up the hill. Eshreal was more than glad to see Rey and Kylo as they approached the group.

"What is going on here," Kylo asked.

He and Rey looked furious. Zer-o and Gear both turned to look at the couple with only a turn of the neck. Eshreal, Cade, Liki and Asera all took a step or two back.

"I know you two aren't about to fight," Rey said with a frown.

When no one said anything Kylo put his hands up and separated the two with the Force sending them flying in opposite directions.

"We could feel the discontent from our hut. What the hell is going on here," Kylo asked again.

"They're just restless, Kylo. We need something to do that doesn't include us sitting around meditating," Eshreal explained.

Rey and Kylo looked at each other.

"Everyone go find something to do on your own. In the next couple of days we will get back to our regular training schedule and I will talk to my mother about finding you all a mission or something that will get you off of the planet," Kylo said.

"And if I even think that I sense you guys are going to fight again I'll have you both thrown into the dungeon," Rey said with a look on her face that would have been more at home on Kylo's face.

And with that they couple kept walking until they disappeared into the jungle. Zer-o and Gear slowly got to their feet. They glared at each other before both taking off for the base but going opposite ways. Cade sighed and shook his head.

"I'm gonna head to the workshop. Thanks for the outing Essie, too bad those idiots had to ruin it," he said and headed for the base.

"Yeah, I better get back to work," Taliki said. "You coming Sera," she asked.

"See ya, Essie. I'd better get back before Kaizer needs to head home," Asera said and headed back to the base with Taliki.

"This is what I get for trying to do something nice," Eshreal said and followed the rest of the group back to the base…


	3. Chapter 3

So hey guys, I know its been so long and I apologize. It's been one hell of a new year. On top of having writer's block I broke and then lost my flash drive with all of my writing and notes on it. So I've been struggling with how to proceed from there. I've finally decided to just keep going forward. I have a few hard copies of things and it's enough to continue on with both The Knights of Rey and The Neo Order as well as the next two novels, that I hopefully will be able to finish before the new movie. Thank you for being patient and enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the amazing characters!

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Time to Strike Back**

After the party celebrating Rey's passage of her last trail where the Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker showed up with missions for both The Knights of Rey, and Kylo and Rey herself, Eshreal and the others began looking into everything about the Darksaber. In the middle of their research Essie came up with the idea that Rey needed to be officially knighted before they all took off to look for the Knights of Ren and she and the others went off to Mandalore. The ceremony was short and simple but when it was over the group was filled with a new sense of purpose and pride.

They were disciples of the Grey Ember Order as well as the Knights of Rey now. It felt good to know that their leaders weren't just resting on their laurels. They had started working on their own order that took the best of the Jedi, Grey Jedi, and Sith to make something even better, something that might be able to keep the darkness at bay and bring balance to the universe.

Rey and Kylo left for Hutt space the day after the knighting ceremony leaving the Knights with nothing to do until Leia gave them the okay to get going. Taliki, Eshreal and Asera began researching the three main branches of Force users. They complied lists of all the most powerful people from each faction, any teachings they felt were relevant to the cause, beliefs that led to the downfall of the Jedi and the Sith and the secrecy of the Grey Order until they had mountains of things for Rey and Kylo to consider as they decided what the Grey Ember Order was going to stand for.

In the meantime, Cade, Zer-o and Gear were coming up with a plan of attack for their mission. The Mandalorian people had given the Dark saber to a new champion after stealing it from the Jedi Temple where it had been stored. Gear and Cade were nervous about attacking the Mand'alor. But Zer-o insisted that she was a woman who was almost 60 years old. He reasoned that the hardest part of the mission would be getting off of the planet with the world's entire population chasing them.

"Essie has to be the one to pilot us out of there. She's the only one who can lose a fleet of ships and get us back to Olara in one piece," Gear reasoned as they looked over the map, they'd found in the Olaran achieves.

"Okay so let's go over this one more time," Zer-o said.

Cade sighed.

"We set the Starfall down here about 10 meters from the city of Sandari. We will already be dressed like the natives but none of us speak Mando'a so I will be using my translator device to be the voice of the group. Once we reached the palace located in the center of the domed city it will be up to Asera and Taliki to distract the guards. Essie will take to the skies as our look out to make sure no one in the palace trips an alarm or calls for back up before we can get the Darksaber from the Mand'alor. It will be up to the three of us to take her out and retrieve the blade. Asera and Taliki will make sure we have a clear path out of the palace. Once we are safely out of the Dome Eshreal will return to the ship and prepare to take off as soon as we are all back on board," Cade said.

Gear and Zer-o nodded when he finished. The plan was a basic one but also the best they could come up with using the limited information they were able to find. The Force would guide them as it had back on Ilum but hopefully this time the Force wouldn't lead Zoroyais to them again.

"We should fill the girls in as soon as possible. I want to be ready when Leia gives us the okay," Zer-o growled out.

He was taking this mission extra seriously as it came directly from Luke Skywalker. It was the first mission they'd been given since Kylo and Zer-o were almost killed on Ilum. Rey and Kylo were away on their own mission and would no doubt be successful; Zer-o couldn't let them upstage him.

"I'll go find them," Gear volunteered.

"I'll gather everything we'll need technology wise and start loading up the Starfall," Cade said.

"Pack some food for Shira. She'll be coming with us as an insurance policy," Zer-o said heading off into the jungle.

"Do you really think this is a good idea," Gear asked Cade as they headed deeper into the base.

"No but if Master Luke Skywalker said we needed the heavily guarded Ark of the Covenant Zer-o and I would be breaking into the Palace of the Gods to retrieve it," Cade answered so truthfully that even he hadn't anticipated the words leaving his mouth.

"Good to know, I guess," Gear said as he headed for the library while Cade headed to the bedrooms.

…

The team got the okay from Leia two days after Rey and Kylo left for Vodran. They'd needed to make sure that the First Order wasn't watching the system for signs of the Resistance. Once the scouts gave the all clear, Eshreal, Asera, Cade, Taliki, Zer-o, Gear and Shira took off for the planet of Mandalore in the Starfall.

It would take them 4 and a half days to get to the Mandalore System from Olara. Not that any of them minded. In fact, it felt good to be off of the planet. It was nice to have a home but that same home could feel like a prison if you are never allowed to leave. Even if it's for your own protection.

Zer-o spent his time training with his nexu. Essie worked on a symbol for the Grey Ember Order. Taliki and Asera tried to come up with a plan for how they would get the guys passed the palace guards. Gear worked on the outfits they would wear to blend in with the Mandalorian natives. And Cade was working on replicating his translator device so that Taliki and Asera would be able to speak to the guards.

…

When the Starfall entered the atmosphere of Mandalore it was as if something important had shifted. Any nervousness the team was feeling disappeared and was replaced by a confidence that was almost prideful. As they descended toward the planet the feeling of surety just grew stronger.

Essie sat the Starfall down 10 meters outside of the city. She watched as the rest of the team changed into their protective gear that would keep them safe from the extreme heat and dangerous sandstorms that could appear out of nowhere. She'd already donned her own desert proof outfit that left her wings bear.

She strapped her lightsaber to her hip and her bow and quiver to her back. Once the other were off the ship and halfway to the city, she would fly far up into the air to keep an eye on them. She felt a little left out at first but quickly realized that she was their best hope at getting off the planet and she could only do that if she was able to get to the Starfall before everyone else.

"Be safe guys. May the Force be with you," she called as they became tiny little specks in the distance.

Eshreal took a deep breath and unfurled her wings to take to the sky to look for First Order ships, sandstorms or anything else that could potentially ruin their escape. Down below her Shira was asleep near the entrance to the ship. She would make sure that no one made it onto the ship while Eshreal was patrolling the air.

"Let's hope this doesn't take all day. We need to get back as soon as possible," Eshreal said to herself as she watched the other's enter the domed city.

…

Asera and Taliki entered the city first. It was fairly easy getting into the city with the documents forged by Leia and the Resistance. Taliki and Asera were here to put on a show for the Mand'alor, the Ruler of Mandalore and the guys were their security. It wasn't hard to see why two beautiful ladies would need such tough looking security.

As they traversed the city streets, they got a few strange looks but nothing that said that they had been made.

"This is not what I was expecting," Cade said staring around as they made their way to the palace.

"What were you expecting? Wide open, majestic cities? The Mandalorians destroyed this planet enough that without the domes that covers the cities, life would not even be able to exist," Gear said with a frown.

"Why would anyone destroy their own planet," Zer-o asked shaking his head.

"Not everyone, in fact most people don't even really think about the planet they live on they way you do," Cade said with a smirk.

"And what's that supposed to mean, fur face," Zer-o asked with a grin.

"That you spend more time meditating and connecting with your home planet than you do friends," Cade said.

"Well we all have our ways of getting stronger and now is not the time for you two to get into a shouting match. The palace is just up a head," Asera said with a nod.

The group turned to look what Asera was staring at.

The city was nothing like what they expected. The buildings and even the roads seemed to sparkle under the thick layer of sand that seemed to cover everything even though the dome was supposed to keep the sand. The palace itself seemed to rise above it all.

The closer they got to the palace the more strange-looks were thrown their way. The streets near the palace were more deserted compared to the rest of the city. The palace had looked majestic and elegant from far away but, the closer they got the more run down the castle looked.

"This is the palace? It looks like its abandoned," Cade said.

"This is where Leia's contact said we were to go. It was pretty easy to get them to believe that we were Force Sensitive dancers. Once she said that the Force was drawing us here, no one seemed to have a problem," Asera said.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Gear said.

"It's going to be fine. We'll just go in there. While the girls dance, we will slip off and find the dark saber. I'll take on Sabine Wren and get the dark saber. You two just keep anyone from interfering in the fight," Zer-o said confidently.

He strode up to the castle where there were the two guards dressed in Mandalorian armor holding swords almost as long as Zer-o's arm.

"Halt," the first guard said sternly in Mando'a.

"State your business here," the second guard commanded.

Zer-o glanced back at Asera and Taliki falling back into the role of body guard. The two women moved forward a bit, making sure to stay just behind Zer-o so that he could protect them if the guards tried anything.

"My name is Jasmine. My apprentice and I are here to dance for Lady Bo-Katan. She was supposed to have been told of our arrival right away," Asera lied easily.

The guards glanced at each other before one stepped back spoke to someone on his comms device. Taliki glanced up at Asera who was staring at the guards impatiently. She was very good at playing the part of the diva.

"She will not be pleased if you make us late," Asera said, her voice was vaguely threatening.

The guard turned back around and looked at his comrade. His expression was tense as if he wasn't happy about letting the group into the palace but he didn't have a choice. Zer-o grinned at the two men in an unsettling manner as he passed them both to walk through the ornate doors and checked the passage way for threats.

Once the others were inside and the doors shut behind them the team began searching the passage way for any clue as to what they were walking into. It was eerily quiet except for the sounds of their footsteps on the stone walk ways. Zer-o had his hand on his blaster and the other guys followed suit. Asera and Taliki walked side by side toward a set of open doors.

"Isn't it a little too quiet. And isn't it weird that here is no one here to greet us besides those guards," Taliki asked in a low voice.

"Maybe everyone is in the ballroom waiting for us," Cade offered.

"Then why is it so quiet," Asera asked. "There should be noise coming from such a party."

Zer-o shrugged and was about to continue on.

"I have a very bad feeling about this, Zer," Taliki cried grabbing his arm.

"It'll be fine Taliki. Master Skywalker wouldn't have sent us into a trap. Besides if there is trouble, I will protect you," Zer-o said glancing over his shoulder at her with his one good eye.

Taliki blushed and Cade couldn't help but wonder if there was something between his brother and the pink skinned woman.

"I hate to say this but I have to agree with Zer-o; Master Skywalker would never knowingly send us into a trap. That being said I'm 89% certain that this is a trap," Gear said, moving around the others toward the open door at the end of the hall. "But there is only one way to find out and that is to go and see Lady Bo-Katan and Sabine Wren."

Without another word the group began moving again. They approached from the side so that whoever was inside the room would not immediately see them coming. Once they were close enough Cade concealed his presence with the Force to check out the interior of the room.

He crossed the door way quickly, getting a good look inside. He frowned back at the others and stepped into the doorway.

"There's no one here but two old ladies," Cade said in a low voice.

The rest of the group joined Cade in the door way.

"Enter Dancers Jasmine and Esmerelda, bring your guards with you. My eyes aren't what they used to be," called the woman with the dark purple hair that had long faded to a pale lilac color.

The woman seated by her side was dressed in Mandalorian armor with the Darksaber displayed proudly on her hip. It was obvious that she was the Mand'alor. Zer-o sized her up right away. Taliki fought the urge to grab for him to keep him from going for her right way.

As the group closer to Sabine and Lady Bo-Katan, soldiers appeared from the shadows with their blasters trained on them, though more seemed to be pointed at Zer-o. Asera and Taliki looked to the two older women. Gear and Cade's hands hovered over their lightsabers.

"What is this, Kryze? We came here to dance for you and speak of the Force. Yet you ambush us with blasters," Asera hissed.

The woman in the full Mandalorian armor spoke in a clear commanding tone, "There was a prophecy told to the Mandalorian people a during the age of the Empire of a Zabrak that would come to try and steal the Darksaber from us in order to defeat the greatest evil to ever threaten this galaxy. We originally thought it was Darth Maul it was referring to but then Sabine saw another Zabrak coming with group of Force users at his back we knew that it was you who would be the real challenger."

Zer-o looked from the two women to his friends with an incredulous look on his face.

"So, you mean to tell me I could have just shown up here and challenged this old broad for the Darksaber as soon as the crystal started calling to me after the battle of Ilum," Zer-o asked.

Cage sniggered at Zer-o calling the warrior an old broad. Asera and Taliki shot him an irritated look. This was not the time to be playing games and tossing around insults with 50 or so blasters pointed at them.

"We aren't giving it to you if that's what you are thinking," Sabine said with a frown.

"Oh," Zer-o asked.

"Gods, this couldn't get any worse," Taliki whispered.

"No, it couldn't," Asera agreed.

"Then what is the point of all this," Gear asked.

The two women turned to look at him. Then so did Sabine, Bo-Katan, Cade and Zer-o.

"What was the point of what," Sabine asked.

"What was the point in playing along without little ruse? Why didn't you shoot us out of the sky. Instead you agreed to let us come here, land on your planet and come inside your castle just for you to point blasters at us? That makes no sense," Gear said with a frown as he thought it all over.

"We aren't giving it to you Zer-o of Dathomir but if you can defeat the Mand'alor we will lend you the Darksaber to fight the Neo Order," Sabine said with a wry smile.

She eyed the woman in the armor who's hand was now on the hilt of the Darksaber. Taliki took a step toward Zer-o but he was already moving out of the circle of his friends toward Lady Bo-Katan who had gotten up for her throne and was walking toward the center of the hall.

"I take it that your comrade accepts the challenge," Sabine Wren said watching as the two combatants sized each other up.

"My brother never backs down from a challenge especially one coming from an old woman," Cade said proudly.

Asera and Taliki shot him an annoyed look. The wolfman shrugged before turning back to Lady Bo-Katan and Zer-o, who were circling each other. Lady Bo-Katan already had unsheathed and ignited the Darksaber.

The black blade was skinner than any lightsaber any of them had ever seen before and the beam of energy came to a point unlike any other lightsaber. The handle was rather plain in comparison to the strange black blade that seemed to glow with white light. The handle was made of Mandalorian Iron and was shaped like a rectangle unlike the usual cylinder shaped hilts.

"This isn't going to end well," Asera muttered to herself.

She took her hand away from her lightsaber and relaxed her posture. Taliki followed her lead and looked to the guys who also relaxed. The soldiers stopped pointing their blasters at the Knights once they realized that they were going to attack at the moment.

…

Zer-o ejected his purple lightsaber from his blaster attachment and ignited it.

The two blades hummed on different frequencies creating a high pitched scream when they clashed for the first time as the combatants lazily swung their swords at each other. They were testing each other before the real fight began.

Zer-o wanted to see what the older woman could do. Their blades clashed a few times as they circled each other, only coming close to strike out quickly before leaping away.

"What's the matter Zabrak, afraid to get you ass kicked by an old woman," Lady Bo-Katan said.

Zer-o growled at her and lunged forward holding his blade along his arms. He swung his blade toward her feet and was shocked when she jumped over the blade before landing a punch to his jaw that was hard enough to make him see stars. Zer-o rolled away from her, regained his balance and lunged for her again.

This time when their blades met, Zer-o swept Lady Bo-Katan's legs from under her but before she could hit the ground Zer-o grabbed her by the throat using the Force. He drug her over to him and glared at her.

"Give me the blade. You and I both know that I will win or I will take it by force. Either way the crystal in that saber is calling to me and Luke Skywalker said we need it to defeat Zoroyais and his Neo Order. No one ever said that you wouldn't get it back…eventually," Zer-o said confidently.

The woman laughed.

"Foolish boy. You Jedi are so high and mighty that you think you can just come here and take what rightfully belongs to us," she said and even though her voice was garbled from Zer-o's grip on her throat the outrage was clearly received.

"We aren't Jedi," Zer-o said,

"Sith then? I'm not surprised Skywalker fell to the dark side right along with father and nephew," she spat, suddenly rearing up and kicking Zer-o in the chest.

He lost his grip on her and she dropped to the ground rolling to her feet. With a wave of her wrist Zer-o was knocked off of his feet into the nearest wall but he kept his lightsaber in his hand. He shook his head in disgust.

"We sure as hell aren't Sith otherwise I would have just broke in here and slaughtered you all," Zer-o said climbing to his feet slashing out at her while slowly but surely making his way inside her defenses. "We are Knights of Rey, members of the Grey Ember Order. Our mission is to bring Balance to the Universe," he said, catching her blade behind his back with his inverted grip on the lightsaber he moved toward her and landed an uppercut that lifted her off of her feet and knocked her helmet off which revealed red hair that had long faded to white and pale green eyes.

Bo-Katan landed on her butt and groaned softly. Zer-o heard gasps come from around the room and hesitated. He didn't want to kill the woman, just prove that he was superior to her and that he deserved to be the one to wield the Darksaber to defeat Zoroyais.

He watched dispassionately as Bo-Katan waved off one of the soldiers as they came over to help her up. She struggled to her feet and wiped blood from her lip. She called the Darksaber back to her grip and slashed at Zer-o who dodged it easier than he had before.

The fight was over. She just needed to admit it.

…

"And that's that," Cade growled softly.

"What do you mean," Taliki asked.

"Lady Bo-Katan is old for a human. More fragile. I'm sure when she landed on the ground, she hurt herself but her pride as a warrior won't let her admit that her age has truly slowed her down," Asera whispered glancing to where Sabine Wren was on the edge the steps watching the fight.

"That's dumb. There's no reason to continue with the fight if she's just risking greater injury," Taliki said loudly drawing the unwanted attention of the soldiers who had their blasters still trained on them. "What," she asked shrugging her shoulders.

"Please don't get us shot when we may actually make it out of here unscathed," Gear plead quietly.

"Fine, I'll keep my mouth shut," Taliki said folding her arms over her ample chest.

Asera again glanced over at Sabine, who was watching as Zer-o and the leader of her people exchanged blows. The fight continued at a slower pace. Lady Bo-Katan was on the defensive now with Zer-o moving in and backing her into a corner. Once Zer-o was close enough, he began knocking his purple lightsaber against the strange black blade of the Darksaber.

Sensing that Zer-o was about to get inside of her defenses, she reached out to push him away from her. Before the Force could push him away, he got his blade under hers and with a flick of his wrist and a gripping of his left fist the Darksaber was wrenched from her hand as Zer-o flew across the room. The breath was knocked out of him as he slammed into the wall across from Bo-Katan but he didn't let go of his lightsaber, nor did he loosen his grip on the Darksaber. The blade was almost to him before Lady Bo-Katan regained her composer and began trying to pull it back to her.

Asera and the others exchanged a glance as the Zabrak and the Mandalorian both pulled at the weapon. They all knew what would happen if they kept this up but Asera wondered if Sabine Wren knew. Soon enough the air around them began to vibrate with the power of the Force as the two warriors struggled over the blade. After a few moments Sabine got to her feet.

"Enough," she yelled.

Lady Bo-Katan and Zer-o held on a little while longer, both of them waiting to see who would let go first. In the end it was Lady Bo-Katan who dropped her hand. The Darksaber landed in Zer-o's open palm as he smirked at the older woman.

"I told you this was meant to be mine," he said. He glanced at the others and added, "For now. Once we defeat Zoroyais, I personally swear to make sure it is returned to your people."

Asera sighed in relief. She was glad he didn't totally blow it with these people. She stood a little straighter and began walking closer to Sabine Wren.

"Lady Sabine Wren, thank you for giving Zer-o the chance to prove that he is worthy to wield the blade of you people. We would like the opportunity to tell you all about the Gray Ember Order," Asera said cautiously.

The woman turned to the group with a frown.

"Your Zabrak has already beaten Lady Bo-Katan, there is no need to pander to me about your little cult. In fact, I want all of you out of my sight and off of my planet as soon as possible," she said going over to Lady Bo-Katan.

Asera moved to argue but Cade grabbed her and said, "Thank you Lady Wren. We will bring the Darksaber back."

He jerked his head at Zer-o. The male stuck the Darksaber in his holster and ran to catch up with the group who was being escorted out by the soldiers who once again had their blasters pointed at them. Lady Bo-Katan shot the group a disdainful look as they left the ballroom and a group of healers began looking her over.

Zer-o was downright giddy as the armed guards escorted the Knights out of the palace. Cade and Gear

Asera was worried that leading the men back to their ship would lead to them being attacked but as soon as the palace was out of sight the men dropped away heading back to protect their leaders. Asera stopped the group when they were a few miles out and sent Cade to back track and make sure they weren't being followed. Once they had the all clear they continued to the ship.

"You could try not to look so pleased with yourself. All you did was beat up an old lady," Gear grumbled as they trudged through the sand. "It's not like you really need another weapon, it won't make up for the brains you lack."

Zer-o kept walking but threw a glance over his shoulder at Gear and said, "Not even you could ruin this for me."

He ignited the blade and twirled it as he walked. Asera and Cade exchanged a look. Cade had never seen the male so giddy without having stolen something really valuable from some really bad guys or making a big payday but returning some rich guy's kid or lover.

"Besides this blade is something we need to defeat Zoroyais. I was meant to wield this blade against him. If I'd had it and Kylo had used his new lightsabers the first time maybe I wouldn't have lost an eye," Zer-o said. "Maybe Ren wouldn't have almost died," he said almost under his breath.

"Well either way we have a long way to go still. We all need to tighten up on our fighting," Cade said.

"Some more than others," Gear grumbled.

"We all need to strengthen our connections to the Force. I feel like since the battle on Ilum, we've all been so focused on figuring out how to fight someone who can toss our strongest fighter around like a rag doll that we forgot who we were and what we can do. We need to gather around our leaders and found the balance within ourselves, both individually and as a whole," Cade continued as though Gear hadn't even spoken.

"I agree. We need to be ready for the next battle regardless if it's the First Order, the Neo Order or Zoroyais himself," Asera said.

The rest of the group nodded in agreement and continued on their way back to the ship.

"How disappointed is the Captain going to be when she learns that she missed the only excitement we are sure to see on this journey," Taliki asked as she spotted Eshreal floating up in the sky over the ship.

…

"What do you mean they just made you fight their leader one on one for the blade," Eshreal asked as the rest of the group approached the ship.

She was furious that she had missed all of the action and no one even thought to radio her and let her know what was going on. Before anyone could answer her question, she turned and marched up the short ramp onto the ship. The others scrambled onto the ship after her but she went straight to the cockpit and started the engines.

V5 followed after her beeping in concern.

"Oh, don't mind me, my friends just left me sitting in this hot ass desert while they got to watch a cool fight," she grumbled to the droid. "I coulda been home with my plants."

"Ah, don't be like that Cap. The fight wasn't even that exciting. It was no fun beating up on an old lady," Zer-o said taking the seat behind her. He tossed the hilt of the Darksaber up and caught it, "I, for one am glad that we don't have to flee from this planet. I'd like to come back and train here one day."

"Look at it this way Essie, think about how pleased Master Skywalker will be to learn that we were able to do this without making a new enemy," Asera said before disappearing off to her room.

"Yeah, it could have been a disaster like our usual missions. Just think about how we met Sera," Taliki said with a smile, stripping her protective gear off as she headed for her room.

"And we couldn't just radio to you while all their men had blasters pointed in our faces," Gear said heading off for the kitchen.

As her friends spoke her anger leaked away. They were right. This mission had gone so much better than the group could have ever imagined. Being mad at them was just petty.

"Fine. I guess I can't be mad at that. Let's just hope we can get home without running into any trouble," she said as she they jumped to lightspeed.


End file.
